Brief:
This is an extremely simple monocopter design that uses a section of 24mm motor tubing as the central hub. Its construction is identical to its bigger 18mm cousin. As a result, much of this review is cut-and-pasted. New/different material is thus in bold.

Construction:
The parts list:

• 1/16" Basswood sheet
• 24mm tube
• BT-5 motor mount
• ¼" dowel
• ¼" launch lug

This kit requires Elmer's Glue All, and an X-Acto knife with a new #11 blade. It's almost so easy that it could be considered ARF (almost ready to fly). You start by cutting the pre-marked holes from the 24mm tube. The patterns are polygons so this involves multiple straight cuts. These are best accomplished by starting inserting the tip of the blade at one vertex with the cutting surface directed along the line. If you carefully insert the blade the rest of the way, the cut will be made. The tube is flexible so be careful that you don't crimp it or cut yourself.

The parts are all inserted and fillets are applied inside and out. Because the holes are supposed to be snug, I found it helped to insert a motor in the motor mount when it is inserted.

I'd recommend waiting until these fillets to at least partially set before proceeding...but I didn't. The wing fits in the end of the tube and needs to be trimmed slightly. The fit should remain snug and internal fillets are again applied. I checked several times as the glue set to ensure the wing was aligned properly and was straight.

Finishing:
Art says to apply two light coats of enamel to protect the kit from moisture. I used Helmsman Spar Urethane as a clearcoat.

Construction Rating: 5 out of 5

Flight:
You form a thrust ring with masking tape and friction fit the motor so it won't fall out. The motor is oriented with its nozzle down. If you put it in backwards you will win closest to the pad (don't ask). You need a sturdy pad with a short ¼" rod (1" or so). Art provides plans for a suitable monocopter pad in the instructions.

I flew this kit on both an A3-4T and an A10-3T. The A3-4T flight was longer and higher so I recommend this motor. Both flights ejected near the ground so care should be taken if people are around or if there is a fire danger.

Recovery:
After burn out the model quickly slows and tumbles to the ground.

Flight Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary:
Art's hit another home run with the Helix monocopters. They are simple, elegant, and fly great. It's the easiest way I know to get into monocoptering. This 13mm version is fun, but I prefer the 18mm version.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5

Brief:
The Helix is an innovative and simple monocopter design from Art Applewhite. It is extremely simple to build and goes together quickly. It's also a hoot to fly.

I was lucky enough to get to watch the flights of the prototypes as Art was developing this line and now it seems like he is the source of a monocopter renaissance. It's a lot of fun.

Construction:
The components for this kit consist of a pre-marked body tube, a motor tube, a 1/4" launch lug, a balance beam, and a basswood wing. Also included are thorough instructions on building the rocket and instructions for a simple launching pad. This rocket is not meant for an Estes setup.

The body tube, such as it is, is marked by the simple expedient of being wrapped by a sheet with all of the relevant locations indicated by polygons of the appropriate size.

The first step in construction is to cut out the polygons on the body tube. This is done with an #11 X-Acto knife and the blade needs to be a new one. The method recommended in the instructions and, which worked quite well, is to push the blade in perpendicular along one line of a polygon, slowly push it in until the blade completely covers one line segment, remove the blade and repeat as needed until all sides are cut out.

Once the holes are cut, the three piercing elements are test fit. These include the launch lug, the balance beam, and the motor tube. The motor tube goes in a lot easier when its stiffened by a spent casing.

When the pieces are in, they need to be adjusted for symmetry; all of the pieces need to be centered. With that done, a fillet of white glue is applied inside the BT to the visible parts of the intersections with the motor tube. With that done, all of the protrusions can be filleted with white glue on the outside.

The last item to be installed is the wing. It is made from a pre-cut piece of basswood. You can round the edges if you like but I did not. I slipped it in the marked end of the BT. It will slightly deform the tube, but that is expected and explained in the directions.

Alignment is not a problem. A filled triangle marks the point on the BT which should be aligned with the center of each side of the wing. Then it is just a matter of making sure it is sitting perpendicular, something aided by having its end sit flush on the balance beam. The wing is then glued into place with white glue.

Finishing:
The instructions recommend a couple of light coats of sealer or a light coat of paint. I elected to go the paint route and chose yellow. I gave it just one good coat. The instructions warn against using too much and throwing off the balance.

I am happy with the result. The text from the BT can still be read under the paint but, then again, it's nice to have little reminders such as which side is the top.

Construction Rating: 5 out of 5

Flight:
I built 3 variants of Art's Helices at the same time for an event at the local museum. This one was the first to be built and the first to be launched. I used an A3-4T and it did exactly what it was supposed to do.

It spun around. It screwed its way into the air. It elicited lots of gasps from enthusiastic kids. What more could you ask for.

I will definitely be flying this one again.

Recovery:
The Helix tumbled gently to the grass, ready to fly again.

Flight Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:
This one is easy, inexpensive, interesting, and different. It's easily worth the 20 minutes to build one.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5

Brief:
After reading a number of very positive reviews of the various new Applewhite monocopters, I decided to pull the trigger and order a couple myself. I was pleasantly surprised, when in addition to the pair I ordered, Art slipped one of these 13mm Helix kits in as a free bonus.

I decided to quickly jump on it and am offering up this third opinion with another solid endorsement.

Construction:
There are very few parts in this kit and all were acceptable quality:

• BT-50 body tube
• 1/4" launch lug
• BT-5 motor tube
• 1/4" dowel (balancing beam)
• 1/16" basswood (wing)

This kit builds very quickly and would probably be a skill level 2 kit, mainly because of the need to make sure everything is well aligned and balanced. I had mine done in about 15 minutes.

The other reviews accurately described the construction process, so in an effort to try to spend less time writing up the review than building the monocopter, I'll keep it brief. I was surprised that the body tube came with a pattern already glued to it, figuring that type of work is normally left to the modeler. Not only are the "holes" to cut out clearly marked, but there are even labels to make sure you know which end is up. Most importantly, so that you know which way to insert the motor.

Once the six holes are cut out, the lug, dowel and motor tube are tacked in. There is a nice end view in the instructions to make sure everything is positioned right, but frankly, the holes are uniquely sized and it would be darned near impossible to mess this up. The end view reminded me of that magic trick where the magician puts a bunch of swords through a box that the assistant is in.

The final step of construction is gluing in the wing. My basswood piece was a tiny bit oversized, so I had to sand it down a little. I rounded my leading and trailing edges and hit it with 400 grit sandpaper as well.

Finishing:
I chose not to paint mine, opting instead for coloring with magic markers. That keeps the weight down, and I was paranoid about messing up the balance and trim. It also kept the labeling visible, with that nice reminder of which end the motor should thrust from.

Construction Rating: 5 out of 5

Flight and Recovery:
The other reviews mention that the kit includes plans for a launch stand. The instructions also stress NOT to launch off a long rod, as anything more than about an inch will just lead to rod whip and funky flights. I was lazy, and decided I'd try to outsmart Art a bit by using a 1/4" steel rod but using tape as a standoff to start it at the top of the rod. I went with the favored A3-4T.

I did manage to get a trace of rod whip, mainly because even starting at the top, it still put out enough force to move the rod a bit. It wasn't too bad though, and the flight was just fine.

Monocopters are even higher drag and lower altitude than most saucers, so this could definitely qualify for a school yard flier. Dick's warning that the ejection would be at or near the ground proved out with mine as well, as the ejection was late enough to just slow down the impact a bit.

Flight Rating: 4 ½ out of 5

Summary:
I'll admit I'm not much of a saucer fan, but monocopters are just too cool. This certainly won't fly high or drift far, but it's entertaining, easy to build, and thanks to Art's great design, it's very easy to make work well.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5